JP7505175B2 - Connector Cleaning Equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a connector cleaning device that cleans connectors for connecting medical tubes.

Conventionally, efforts have been made to prevent incorrect connection of connectors for connecting medical tubes. As part of these efforts, standards are being introduced to promote the prevention of medical accidents and ensure a stable supply through international harmonization. For enteral nutrition applications, there are standards in which the connector connected to the patient is the male side and the connector opposite the patient is the female side. In such standards, due to the structure, for example, nutrients related to enteral nutrition may remain in the internal space of the male connector on the patient side. As a result, there is a risk of hygienic problems such as bacteria generation in the male connector that is left in place while connected to the patient. To eliminate such risks, a technology has been disclosed in which the nutrients are wiped off with a material that absorbs them, but there is a possibility that the nutrients may not be completely wiped off and may solidify.

JP 2017-099738 A

The present invention was invented in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a technology that makes it easier or more reliable to clean medical male connectors.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention employs the following configuration: That is, the present invention is an electric medical connector cleaning device for cleaning a male connector having a substantially cylindrical or substantially truncated cone-shaped male connector body with a fluid flow path passing therethrough in the axial direction, and a substantially cylindrical collar connected to the male connector body at the rear end side thereof and surrounding the male connector body,
A fixing portion for fixing the male connector;
a connecting portion that connects the male connector body and the collar when the male connector is fixed to the fixing portion; and a cleaning liquid ejection portion that ejects cleaning liquid from the front of the male connector into an internal space of the male connector that is surrounded by a side surface of the male connector body and an inner surface of the collar.
A cleaning liquid tank for storing a cleaning liquid;
A pump that pressure-feeds the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid tank to the cleaning liquid jetting portion;
A control unit that causes the pump to perform a predetermined operation;
The connector cleaning device is characterized by comprising:

With this, the male connector is fixed by the fixing part, and cleaning liquid is sprayed from the cleaning liquid spray part into the internal space of the male connector from the front of the male connector, making it possible to easily and reliably clean the side of the male connector body, the inner surface of the collar, and the connecting part.

In the present invention, the control unit may be provided with a program for intermittently spraying the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid spraying unit. In this way, collisions of the cleaning liquid flowing into the internal space can be reduced, improving the cleaning effect.

In the present invention, the control unit includes a plurality of programs for causing the cleaning liquid ejection unit to eject the cleaning liquid,
The device may further include buttons for selectively executing each program. In this way, the user can select the spray method according to the condition of the connector to be cleaned, thereby improving the cleaning effect.

The present invention makes it easier and more reliable to clean medical male connectors.

1 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a male connector in an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a cleaning device main body in an embodiment of the present invention. 3A and 3B are diagrams showing a schematic configuration of a cover member in an embodiment of the present invention. 13 is a diagram showing the state in which the male connector is inserted into the cleaning device body and the lid member is attached and locked in the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the flow of a cleaning liquid in the embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a connector cleaning device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

The following describes an embodiment of the present invention. The embodiment described below is an example of an embodiment of the present invention, and does not limit the technical scope of the present invention to the following aspects.

Figure 1 shows a vertical cross-sectional view of a male connector 100, which is the subject of cleaning by the connector cleaning device of this embodiment. In Figure 1, the lower side corresponds to the tip side of the male connector 100, and the upper side corresponds to the rear end side. The male connector 100 in this embodiment is provided with a connector body 101 as a male connector body having an internal flow path 101a that communicates with a tube 102. The connector body 101 has a tapered (also called a truncated cone) side surface 101b whose outer diameter becomes smaller as it approaches the tip side.

A roughly cylindrical collar 103 is provided around the connector body 101 so as to surround the outer periphery of the connector body 101. A collar coupling portion 103b provided on the rear end side of the inner surface of the collar 103, together with a body coupling portion 101c provided on the rear end side of the side surface 101b of the connector body 101, forms a connector coupling portion 100a as a connecting portion. In the connector coupling portion 100a, the collar 103 is coupled to the connector body 101 so as to be rotatable around the axis and not to come off toward the tip side. The space surrounded by the side surface 101b of the connector body 101, the inner surface of the collar 103, and the connector coupling portion 100a will be referred to as the internal space of the male connector 100 below.

Furthermore, further rearward of the body coupling portion 101c of the connector body 101, a disk-shaped rib portion 101d is formed that protrudes outward along the entire side surface of the connector body 101, and functions as a stopper to prevent the collar 103 from moving excessively toward the rear end of the connector body 101. Furthermore, the rear end side of the flow passage 101a provided in the connector body 101 has an expanded inner diameter to form a large diameter portion 101e into which the tube 102 can be press-fitted. A female thread portion 103a is formed on the inner surface of the collar 103, which can be screwed into a female connector (not shown) that has a male thread portion.

In this embodiment, the tube 102 shown in Fig. 1 is connected to the living body, and the male connector 100 is screwed to a female connector (not shown), so that a fluid such as a nutrient solution is supplied from the female connector side to the living body via the male connector 100 and the tube 102. Note that, although the shape of the connector body 101 shown in Fig. 1 is tapered (frustum cone-shaped), the shape is not limited to this and may be cylindrical.

2 and 6 show schematic diagrams of the cleaning device main body 1 as a cleaning unit for fixing and cleaning the male connector 100 in this embodiment. FIG. 2(a) is a plan view of the cleaning device main body 1, and FIG. 2(b) is a cross-sectional view of the cleaning device main body 1 taken along the line A-A. In plan view, the cleaning device main body 1 has a large-diameter cylindrical main body portion 21, a connector mounting portion 20 that is a small-diameter portion provided on the upper side of the main body portion 21 and that mounts the male connector 100, and a drainage tube portion 22 that discharges the cleaning liquid after cleaning the male connector 100. Here, the cylindrical side wall of the connector mounting portion 20 corresponds to the side wall portion. A cleaning liquid tank is located below the cleaning device main body 1, and a pump portion, a motor, a battery, etc. are arranged below the cleaning liquid tank to form a male connector cleaning device.

As can be seen from the A-A cross-sectional view in FIG. 2(b), the connector attachment portion 20 is provided with a connector insertion hole 10 into which the male connector 100 is inserted. This connector insertion hole 10 is a cylindrical space, and its inner diameter is slightly larger than the outer diameter of the collar 103 of the male connector 100. The bottom surface 11 of the connector insertion hole 10 is provided with an abutment groove 12, which is an annular groove in a plan view and against which the tip of the connector body 101 can abut when the male connector 100 is attached.

The inner periphery of the contact groove 12, which is a circular groove, has a protrusion 13 formed on the center side thereof, which is inserted into the flow path 101a of the connector body 101. Furthermore, an elastic ring 14 is provided on the outer periphery of the bottom surface 11, against which the tip of the collar 103 of the male connector 100 contacts. This elastic ring 14 contacts the collar 103 of the male connector 100, thereby supporting the male connector 100 so that it can elastically move up and down.

The bottom surface 11 of the connector insertion hole 10 is provided with a cleaning liquid ejection hole 15 as a cleaning liquid ejection part. This cleaning liquid ejection hole 15 is connected to a cleaning liquid inlet hole 18 that opens on the bottom surface of the main body part 21 of the cleaning device main body 1. When cleaning liquid is pressure-fed from the outside to this cleaning liquid inlet hole 18, the cleaning liquid is ejected from the cleaning liquid ejection hole 15. In addition, a cleaning liquid discharge hole 16 is opened on the opposite side of the cleaning liquid ejection hole 15 across the center on the bottom surface 11 of the connector insertion hole 10 (when the male connector 100 is fixed, it can also be said that it is the opposite side of the cleaning liquid ejection hole 15 across the connector main body 101). Here, the cleaning liquid ejection part in this embodiment is composed of the cleaning liquid ejection hole 15 and the cleaning liquid inlet hole 18. Also, the cleaning liquid ejection hole 15 corresponds to the ejection hole. Also, the bottom surface 11 of the connector insertion hole 10 corresponds to the opposing surface.

In addition, a second cleaning liquid discharge hole 17 is opened on the opposite side of the center of the cleaning liquid ejection hole 15 in the inner wall 10a of the connector insertion hole 10. Both the cleaning liquid discharge hole 16 and the second cleaning liquid discharge hole 17 are connected to a cleaning liquid discharge path 19, which is a pipe that penetrates the inside of the drain tube portion 22. In this embodiment, the cleaning liquid discharge hole 16 and the second cleaning liquid discharge hole 17 are only separated by the elastic ring 14, and may actually be formed at the same time as forming the cleaning liquid discharge path 19. In this embodiment, the discharge portion is composed of the cleaning liquid discharge hole 16, the second cleaning liquid discharge hole 17, and the cleaning liquid discharge path 19. In addition, the cleaning liquid discharge hole 16 corresponds to a discharge hole, and the second cleaning liquid discharge hole 17 corresponds to a second discharge hole.

3 shows a schematic configuration of the lid member 2 that can be attached from above to the connector attachment portion 20 of the cleaning device main body 1. Fig. 3(a) is a plan view of the lid member 2, and Fig. 3(b) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line B-B. The lid member 2 has a cylindrical shape with one end face closed, and a slit 2a is formed on the closed end face and the side face. The width of the slit 2a is set to 1/2 the width of the tube 102.
The outer diameter of the casing is slightly larger than that of the casing.

The inner surface of the side of the cover member 2 is provided with a locking mechanism 2b that fixes the cover member 2 to the connector mounting portion 20. In the example shown in FIG. 3, the locking mechanism 2b is a protrusion provided on the inner surface of the side of the cover member 2. In this embodiment, the cover member 2 is placed over the connector mounting portion 20 from above, the protrusion is inserted into a key-shaped groove (not shown) provided on the side of the connector mounting portion 20, and the cover member 2 is then rotated to fix the cover member 2 to the connector mounting portion 20. This makes it possible to fix the male connector 100 in the connector insertion hole 10.

It should be noted that various other mechanisms can be used for this locking mechanism 2b. For example, the locking mechanism 2b may be a female thread provided on the inner surface of the side of the lid member 2. In this case, the lid member 2 may be fixed to the connector mounting portion 20 by placing the lid member 2 over the connector mounting portion 20 from above and rotating it to screw the female thread of the lid member 2 into the male thread provided on the side of the connector mounting portion 20. Here, the lid member 2, connector mounting portion 20, and bottom surface 11 in the embodiment constitute the fixing portion.

Figure 4 shows the state in which the male connector 100 is inserted through the connector insertion hole 10 of the cleaning device main body 1, and the cover member 2 is attached and fixed to the connector attachment part 20. As shown in Figure 4, the male connector 100 is inserted through the connector insertion hole 10 with its tip facing down, and then the cover member 2 is attached to the connector attachment part 20. At this time, the tip of the connector main body 101 enters the abutment groove 12, and the protrusion 13 is inserted into the flow path 101a of the connector main body 101 and fixed in a manner that blocks the flow path 101a. In addition, the tip of the collar 103 abuts against the elastic ring 14.

When the male connector 100 is fixed in this state within the connector insertion hole 10 of the cleaning device main body 1, the inner and outer periphery of the collar 103 can be sealed except for the areas where the cleaning liquid discharge hole 16 and the second cleaning liquid discharge hole 17 are provided. In addition, the tip of the flow path 101a of the connector main body 101 can be sealed.

When the male connector 100 is inserted through the connector insertion hole 10 and the cover member 2 is attached to the connector attachment portion 20, if the tube 102 is long, it may be necessary to pass the long tube 102 through the cover member 2. However, in this embodiment, the cover member 2 is provided with a slit 2a. Therefore, the cover member 2 can be placed over and fixed to the connector attachment portion 20 so that the tube 102 is introduced into the slit 2a from the side. This makes it easier to fix the cover member 2 to the connector attachment portion 20 and fix the male connector 100 in the connector insertion hole 10.

In this embodiment, with the male connector 100 fixed to the cleaning device main body 1, cleaning liquid is introduced through the cleaning liquid inlet hole 18 and ejected from the cleaning liquid ejection hole 15 to clean the side of the connector main body 101, the inner surface of the collar 103, and the internal space 100b, which is the space surrounded by the connector coupling part 100a, in the male connector 100. Figure 5 shows the flow of the cleaning liquid in this case.

As shown by the arrows in FIG. 5, cleaning liquid is introduced through the cleaning liquid inlet hole 18, and the cleaning liquid ejected from the cleaning liquid ejection hole 15 flows into the internal space 100b of the male connector 100. The cleaning liquid that has flowed into the internal space 100b of the male connector 100 flows through the internal space 100b, cleaning the side of the connector body 101, the inner surface of the collar 103, and the connector coupling portion 100a, and is then introduced into the cleaning liquid discharge path 19 through the cleaning liquid discharge hole 16 and discharged from the drain tube portion 22.

In addition, in the connector coupling portion 100a of the male connector 100, cleaning liquid may leak out to the upper side of FIG. 5 from the gap between the main body coupling portion 101c and the collar coupling portion 103b. The leaked cleaning liquid falls between the inner wall of the connector insertion hole 10 and the outer circumferential surface of the collar 103, is introduced into the cleaning liquid discharge path 19 through the second cleaning liquid discharge hole 17, and is discharged from the drain tube portion 22.

In this state, the flow path 101a of the connector body 101 is sealed by the protrusion 13, so that the cleaning liquid after cleaning the internal space 100b can be prevented from entering and remaining in the flow path 101a. The protrusion 13 in this embodiment corresponds to the seal portion. In addition, the inner periphery side of the collar 103 (corresponding to the internal space 100b) and the outer periphery side of the collar 103 are sealed by the elastic ring 14 except for the part where the cleaning liquid discharge hole 16 and the second cleaning liquid discharge hole 17 are provided, so that the cleaning liquid flowing through the internal space 100b can be prevented from leaking out of the collar 103. The elastic ring 14 in this embodiment corresponds to the second seal portion. In this embodiment, the seal portion is in the form in which the protrusion 13 enters the flow path 101a of the connector body 101 to seal it as described above, but the seal portion is not limited to this form. For example, the liquid-tightness of the contact groove 12 with which the tip of the connector body 101 contacts may be improved, or the protrusion 13 may have a flat shape and adhere closely to the tip of the connector body 101 rather than penetrating the flow path 101a of the connector body 101, thereby sealing the flow path 101a.

Figure 6 shows a cleaning device 30 in which the cleaning device main body 1 and a cleaning liquid tank 31 and a drain tank 35 are integrally configured as storage tanks. In this example, the cleaning liquid tank 31 is provided with a cleaning liquid tube 33 that guides the cleaning liquid stored in the cleaning liquid tank 31 to the cleaning liquid inlet hole 18, and a pump 32 that pressure-feeds the cleaning liquid stored in the cleaning liquid tank 31 to the cleaning liquid inlet hole 18. Also, a drain tube 34 is provided that guides the cleaning liquid discharged from the cleaning liquid drain path 19 after cleaning to the drain tank 35. Here, the cleaning liquid tube 33 and the drain tube 34 may be flexible tubes or hard tubes.

In this example, simply by operating the pump 32, cleaning liquid is sprayed from the cleaning liquid spray hole 15 into the internal space 100b of the male connector 100, cleaning the internal space 100b, and the cleaning liquid after cleaning is discharged into the drain tank 35 and temporarily stored. Note that in FIG. 6, the cleaning liquid tank 31 and the drain tank 35 are configured as an integrated unit, but the cleaning liquid tank 31 and the drain tank 35 may be configured separately, or the drain tank 35 may be omitted and the cleaning liquid after cleaning may be discharged from the drain tube 34 directly into a sewer outlet or the like for disposal.

In this embodiment, the water pressure of the cleaning liquid that flows in through the cleaning liquid inlet hole 18 and is ejected from the cleaning liquid ejection hole 15 can be changed in various ways. For example, the cleaning liquid may be ejected continuously at a constant water pressure, or the water pressure may be changed intermittently, resulting in the cleaning liquid being ejected intermittently. Furthermore, the cleaning liquid may be ejected continuously while the water pressure is changed periodically. The cleaning liquid ejection method is controlled by the control unit, and the water pressure of the cleaning liquid may be changed by controlling the rotation speed of the pumps 32 and 42. It is preferable that the cleaning liquid ejection method can be selectively operated by a button, and it is preferable that the control unit has a button that executes a specified program.

1... cleaning device main body 2... lid member 10... connector insertion hole 15... cleaning liquid ejection hole 19... cleaning liquid discharge path 20... connector mounting portion 21... main body portion 22... drainage tube portion 30, 40... cleaning device 31, 41... cleaning liquid tank 33, 43... cleaning liquid tube 35, 45... drainage tank 100... male connector

Claims (3)

An electric medical connector cleaning device for cleaning a male connector having a substantially cylindrical or substantially truncated cone-shaped male connector body with a fluid flow path passing therethrough in the axial direction, and a substantially cylindrical collar that is connected to the male connector body at a rear end side thereof and surrounds the male connector body,
A fixing portion for fixing the male connector;
a connecting portion that connects the male connector body and the collar when the male connector is fixed to the fixing portion; and a cleaning liquid ejection portion that ejects cleaning liquid from the front of the male connector into an internal space of the male connector that is surrounded by a side surface of the male connector body and an inner surface of the collar.
A cleaning liquid tank for storing a cleaning liquid;
a pump that pressure-feeds the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid tank to the cleaning liquid jetting portion;
A control unit that causes the pump to perform a predetermined operation;
Equipped with
the cleaning liquid ejection portion has an ejection hole provided at a position offset from the axial center of the male connector ,
the fixing portion is provided with a connector insertion hole into which the male connector is inserted, and the connector insertion hole is provided with the ejection hole and a recess recessed toward the front side of the male connector from the ejection hole on a bottom surface thereof,
The recess is adapted for receiving a tip of the male connector body when the male connector is fixed to the fixing portion,
The connector cleaning device is characterized in that the ejection hole is located on the rear end side of the male connector relative to the tip surface of the male connector body when the male connector is fixed to the fixing portion. The connector cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is provided with a program for intermittently spraying cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid spraying unit. The control unit includes a plurality of programs for causing the cleaning liquid ejection unit to eject the cleaning liquid,
3. The connector cleaning device according to claim 1, further comprising buttons for selectively executing each program.

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